As you age, your body changes. This is especially true for your vision, hands, and overall coordination, some of the most essential parts of knitting and crocheting. While you may have learned how to crochet years ago, the truth is that sometimes with age you have to relearn how to crochet or how to knit in a more convenient and comfortable way. Aging does not mean you have to give up your favorite hobbies, but making some adjustments to your techniques can make the whole process much more enjoyable. Check out the 6 Knitting and Crochet Techniques for Aging Hands below to learn about some adjustments you can make to your crochet patterns and knitting projects to make them easier and more enjoyable.

One of the biggest gripes we hear from our audience when it comes to aging and crochet and knitting projects is that hand and wrist fatigue increasingly becomes an issue. Sore wrists and cramped hands can turn the cutest crochet project into a painful process. Look out below for our surprisingly simple solutions.

6 Knitting and Crochet Techniques for Aging Hands

Add light and a magnifier to your space.

Adjust your crochet space to add more light and invest in a magnifier. While it may not seem like sore eyes are directly connected to wrist paint while crocheting, this extra issue can really affect your whole process. Crocheters and knitters who squint may be inadvertently adding tension to their hands as the struggle to see what they are doing. Plus, pausing in uncomfortable and unnatural positions due to poor lighting can easily cause over-exertion.

Stretch, Stretch, Stretch

Make sure to stretch your hands before, during, and after you work on your projects. No crochet technique in the world will make the project easier if you do not take care of yourself. Give your muscles a fighting chance by warming them up each time you crochet or knit. Stretching amidst a hooking or purling session can help too. Consider learning some new stretches or trying yoga for your wrists and hands if you are especially sore.

Give Yourself More Time

The reality is that the more wear and tear your hands receive, the more time they are going to need to recover. This means giving yourself more time to finish projects. Don’t plan on sitting down and crocheting that 2 Hour Pot Holders pattern all the way through in an afternoon. Break up the time you spend crocheting or knitting into smaller segments.

Get (or Make) Hand-Friendly Hooks

Basic and simple crochet hooks can be too small to grip for an extended period of time. Make sure you spend the money on crochet hooks and knitting needles that add some comfort to your crocheting. We recommend buying or making your own knitting needle or crochet hook polymer clay crafts. Adding a softer, bulkier handle to your tools can work wonders.

Skip the super intricate projects.

We all know that crochet patterns with thinner yarn and tinier needles are much harder to make. You should avoid these more intricate projects or, at least, work on them a lot less frequently. Bulky and chunky knitting patterns and crochet projects can be created a lot more quickly and require much less intricate, hand-hurting work.

Be Kind to Yourself

Aging can be a tricky process. It can be really hard to admit that sometimes you are just not capable of doing things as quickly or as precisely as you used to. Above all else, remember to be kind to yourself. While it might be a bummer to crochet a little less or work on easy knitting patterns instead of impressive intermediate endeavors, remember why you started creating in the first place. You can find as much joy in an hour of crocheting than you used two in three hours of hooking.

Easy Crochet Patterns and Beginner Knitting Patterns to Try

Check out these easy crochet patterns that make you crochet experience easy peasy and beginner knitting patterns that are gentle on your hands. Use the knitting and crochet techniques above with these free project patterns we love.

Thanksgiving is over and the holiday season is now officially here. Bright lights, red bows, gift-giving and smiling people – the holidays seem to bring the best in us. This year, FaveCrafts and Red Heart Yarn hope to make your holiday celebrations even more special with their new eBook: Jolly Holidays: 15 Free Knit and Crochet Gifts and Holiday Projects.

You’ll love making your holiday celebration as unique and special as those who take part in it. Get all of your decorations and gifts made well before December 25, using the Jolly Holidays: 15 Knit and Crochet Gifts and Holiday Projects eBook free from FaveCrafts and Red Heart Yarn as your source of inspiration.

And now on with the updates! I know we’ve all been busy knitting for charity, but I wanted to make sure that I showed you how many generous donations we’ve received so far. Thank you so much to everyone who has participated so far! We have so many kind, generous and talented readers!

It was difficult to find the space to show off all of the stuff, but here are a few pictures:

Seriously how cute is that bear scarf set! There’s a hat in there too. 🙂 And look at this cute cupcake hat! Adorable!

Thank you again to everyone who has sent us donations so far! Remember, we’ll be collecting items on behalf of Project Winter Warmth until Nov. 28. After that we’ll choose one lucky winner to receive a $50 prize basket from AllFreeKnitting just for participating! All donations will be delivered to Breanna after Nov. 28 and will be distributed to various charities, mainly the Meals on Wheels program, The INNs Homeless Program, and any local schools where children are in need of these winter items. There are no yarn or pattern requirements for these donations – use whatever you have on hand!

This week’s Meet and Make designer is Megan Goodacre. You’ve seen her knitting designs in Knit Magazine, Creative Knitting, InterweaveKnit.wear and Twist Collective. You can find more of her knitting patterns and knitting help at www.tricksyknitter.com. Megan is also a freelance graphic artist, and lives with her husband and two sons on Vancouver Island, Canada.

Let’s meet Megan!

10 Fun Facts about Megan Goodacre:

I learned to knit when I was six years old.

My first word was “cheese”.

Was born and raised on Vancouver Island.

I am outnumbered by males in my house.

I have a degree in Communications and a diploma in art, but I’d rather be knitting!

I have a stationery fetish, especially for notebooks.

My favorite color is chartreuse.

My favorite fiber is silk. And merino. And alpaca. And linen. And bamboo.

I usually work in my pajamas.

I drink a lot of espresso.

Here’s Megan’s Project:

Today Megan introduces a new free knitting pattern for knitted bookmarks. Lace knitting is a lovely way to add texture to your knitting, but can be daunting in a large project. If you’re new to lace, these little bookmarks are a nice way to try out some common lace knitting techniques. They make lovely gifts for book lovers, and are a great use for leftover yarn. These two bookmarks use some simple, traditional lace motifs that are simple to work and easy to memorize.

Materials

Fingering weight yarn, about 40 yards

Size 2 U.S. knitting needles/3.0mm knitting needles

Tapestry needle (for weaving in ends)

Pins (for blocking)

Gauge
Gauge is not essential for this project. The gauge after blocking, is about 26 sts and 35 rows to 4 inches/10cm in the lace pattern. Your finished bookmarks, after blocking, measure 2 by 8 inches/5 x 20cm.

Skills you’ll need

The basics (casting on, binding off, knit, purl).

Some increases and decreases (see the abbreviation section for a full list).

Get ready to dive into the colorful world of Fair Isle knitting with this collection of 200 motifs. Inside you’ll learn simple solutions to the complex designs featured in fair isle. If you’ve always been afraid of this type of knitting, don’t be. Author Mary Jane Mucklestone includes designs in easy-to-read charts, expert tips on how to select the proper colors and more.

Besides instructions for blocking and finishing, this book is also great for new knitters in general, as it includes instructions for casting on and how to hold your yarn. Soon you’ll be knitting to your heart’s content and with 200 motifs to choose from, you’ll be able to make a variety of knit garments for everyone in your family.
Find more information and enter to win on AllFreeKnitting here.

Editor’s Note: Thank you again to everyone who participated in Breanna’s project. Please note that we are no longer accepting donations at the office, as the project has ended for this year. Thank you!

Attention all knitters and crocheters: I have an exciting opportunity for us all to give back – it’s called Project Winter Warmth.

From now until November 28, Project Winter Warmth will be collecting knit and/or crochet hats, mittens/gloves and scarves for those in need. Donations are needed in all sizes (newborn, adult and children) and will benefit charities in desperate need of these items, mainly the Meals on Wheels program, The INNs Homeless Program, and any local schools where children are in need of these winter items. There are no yarn or pattern requirements for these donations – use whatever you have on hand!

Project Winter Warmth was started by Kenosha high school student Breanna Ricchio (pictured below) who has a passion for helping others. Breanna, along with her teammates on the Bradford High School Girls Varsity Soccer team, hopes to collect enough handmade sets to donate to all of the charities listed above.

When Breanna contacted me a few days ago, I was so excited to help her get the word out about her great cause – she’s from my hometown Kenosha, WI! Breanna started the Winter Warmth Project through the encouragement of her mother. “My mom has always done a lot of charity work and I always tagged behind to help her … She mentioned I should try something on my own. This is the idea I came up with. It’s great my coach and fellow team mates are going to help me out,” she said.

How you can help:

Project Winter Warmth will be collecting knit and/or crochet hats, mittens/gloves and scarves for those in need from now until November 28. Send all of your donations to our office address here:

Once I receive all the donations by the end of November, I’ll be delivering them to Breanna and Bradford High School in one big load. I live right by her school – what a small world. 🙂

As a special treat: For everyone who sends us a donation, I’ll enter your name into a special contest for a prize package from AllFreeKnitting. We gave away a $50 prize basket for our last charity challenge, so I promise it will be good!

Remember, you can use any pattern you would like, but here are a couple of our favorites from AllFreeKnitting.com. We also have plenty of free patterns for scarves, hats and mittens/gloves to choose from!

Now, for the past few weeks, AllFreeKnitting took part in an exciting charity challenge: we knit our very own bear for the Mother Bear Project! I would like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who knit a bear along with us! Check out some of our favorite reader submissions below and keep reading … we’ll announce the winner of our promised prize basket below.

AllFreeKnitting’s finished bear:

We like to call him Frankie after Frank Sinatra. He’s classy – after all, just look at this bow tie!

Reader submissions:

Lori Matteson made this bear for the challenge. I love its little face!

Georgia Green made this insanely cute pair of bears – Fred and Ethel. I love how she made tiny belt buckles too – how creative!

Do you knit and crochet or just absolutely adore fiber? If this describes you, then October 14 is your day to tell the world. Celebrate I Love Yarn Day along with the Craft Yarn Council this October. Whether you knit it, crochet it, wear it, post it, tweet it, carry it, share it, give it, or bomb it, you will join fiber enthusiasts around the nation who love yarn just as much as you do! And by spreading the word about how amazing fiber can be, you might even inspire another knitter or crocheter or two!

Can’t decide how to show your yarn love? The Craft yarn Council has some great ideas on their website, ILoveYarn.org. Here are a few of them:

In case you missed it: AllFreeKnitting is participating in an exciting charity challenge: we’re going to knit a bear for the Mother Bear Project and we’d like for you to join us! If you’ve never heard of this organization before, all knit and crochet bears are made with a special pattern provided by the Mother Bear Project. Completed bears are sent to Africa where children affected by HIV/AIDS get to receive your thoughtful donations.

Progress Update!

Have you finished knitting your bear yet? I almost have mine ready to send off to the Mother Bear Project – he just needs a scarf and a face! Do you have any suggestions or tips for embroidering faces? This is my first time attempting it so any tips would be greatly appreciated. Just leave me a comment! 🙂

Remember, if you send us pictures of your bear (or bear in progress) or post your pictures on our Facebook wall by October 13, you’ll be entered into a contest for free yarn from AllFreeKnitting’s yarn stash.

When I saw this adorable bow headband tutorial by Stephanie from A Common Thread, I knew I had to try to make my own. While I loved the idea of creating a stylish headband from yarn scraps, I also wanted my bow to be more versatile. Wouldn’t it be great if I could transform my bow into a hairclip or a necklace at every fashionable whim? I sure thought so, and so I created my own bow with an open back where either a chain or hairclip can easily be inserted – depending on where my stylish whim takes me.

Here’s how I made my version of this fabulous idea!

Materials:

DK weight yarn from your stash

U.S. size 9 knitting needles

Scissors

Yarn needle

Instructions:

I happened to have some new DK weight yarn that I wanted to try out, so I used that instead of the recommended worsted weight yarn for this tutorial. I also used larger sized needles so my bow would come out light and delicate.

To begin, CO 13 stitches and knit the seed stitch for every row until you have a rectangular piece that’s six inches in length. You can use any stitch you like – garter stitch, daisy stitch, stockinette stitch – I just love the texture of the seed stitch and thought it would make a stunning accessory:

Once your rectangle is long enough, BO and weave in the ends. Take some more yarn of the same color and CO 5 stitches. Continue knitting the seed stitch (or whatever stitch you selected for step 2) for every row until your tiny rectangle is three to three and a half inches long.

Take your smaller rectangle and wrap it around the middle of the larger rectangle and sew sides together. I also attached the sides of the smaller rectangle to the top of the larger rectangle to increase stability.

You’re done! If you want to wear your new bow as a necklace, simply thread a chain through the back of the bow. Want to put it in your hair? Slip a metal hairclip through the back and you’re ready to go. I hope you enjoy!

Full Project Tutorials

Give your garden party an intimate ambiance by creating sun and moon jars. Besides their chic, rustic look, sun and moon jars are easy to use because they are solar powered. Once you make them, leave them out in the sun during the day and watch them glow beautiful colors at night. Essentially sun and […]